Poultry cooper&#39;s helper



l 1932- R. L. BROOKSHIRE ET AL I 1,879,059

POULTRY COOPER S HELPER Filed May 9, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS ATTOR NEV p 1932- R. L. BROOKSHIRE ET AL 1,879,059

POULTRY CQOPER'S HELPER Filed May 9, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTQRS ATTORNEY Patented Sept. 27, 1932 POULTRY COOPERS HELPER Application filed. May 9, 1930. Serial No. 451,152.

As is well known shipping crates or coops for poultry comprise a substantially rectangular box which is made up of slats in order that the fowls may be properly ventilated and in which one or more of the top slats are slidable on the coop and provide the doors therefor whereby the fowls may be placed in or removed from the coop.

In gathering fowls for market it is necessary that the doors remain open or that some means he provided for partly covering the door openings so that'the fowls placed in the coop cannot escape therefrom. The means employed cannot be considered ingenious and 7 frequently fowls that have already been placed in the coop escape therefrom which causes the labor and bother of again catching such fowls. It may, therefore, be considered the primary object of this invention to pro vide a means arranged overthe door opening of a coop whereby'fowls may be readily delivered into the coop and prevented from escaping therefrom.

A further object is the provision of a device for this purpose in the nature of a trough or a chute that has downwardly swinging spring and Weight influenced doors which normally close the same and wherein the vweight of the fowls delivered upon such doors will cause the same to swing to open position to deliver the fowls into the coop and to automatically close after such delivery.

A still further object is the provision of .a device for this purpose which may be handle operated if desired and wherein the handles are adjustably secured to the doors, so that the weight of the same will maintain the doors in closed position.

A still further object is the provision of a device for this purpose which shall be of an extremely simple construction, one which may be cheaply manufactured and one which will accurately and positively perform its function. i

To the attainment of the foregoin the invention consists in the improvement ereinafter described and definitely claimed.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan view illustrating the improvement in applied position.

Figure 2 is a side elevation thereof, a portion of the spring housing being in section.

Figure 3 is. a sectional view approximately on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a sectional view approximately on the line 4-4 of Figure 1.

In the drawings the numeral 1 designates a usual slatted coop for poultry. The top of the coop has its slats, adjacent to the central slats, covered by a metal plate which is nailed thereto, there being blocks between the top of the slats and the crate to provide a pas sageway for removable slats and these removable slats afford the door for the poultry. The space between these removable slats, of course, afford a doorway or opening and for v distinction is indicated by the numeral 2.

When fowls are to be delivered'into the coopwe remove the slats that afford the door and arrange over the top of the slats our imr provement. As disclosed by the drawingsour improvement is in the nature of a trough or chute. The device is preferably but not necessarily constructed of wood and includes ends 3 which have their outer edges inclined inwardly from their top to their bottom and to these inclined portions we nail or otherwise secure the angle sides 4 of the chute.

Fixed in the chute, adjacent to the top thereof, and also on the ends 3 of the said chute there are angle/plates 5 which provide the stops for the doors 6, respectively. There are preferably bumper members 7 in the chute which contact with the stops 5.

The. doors are preferably constructed each from a single sheet of suitable metal that has both of its ends and its edges rolled downwardly and inwardly and in the inner and I end edges we insert a preferably continuous or U-shaped reinforcing rod 8. The outer or end rolled portions of the doors 6 provide bearings for shafts 9' that extend through both of the ends 3 of the chute. The outer ends of the shafts 9 have fixed thereon downwardly extending inwardly inclined arms 10 to which there are connected spring mem bers 12. Preferably there is arranged in each of the spring members a turn buckle 13 whereby the springs can be adjusted and these springs as well as the angle or cranked end portions 10 of the shafts 9 are enclosed in a suitable housing 14. Each housing is preferably in the nature of a plate that has its inner face grooved or cut-away to receive the cranks 10, the springs and the turn buckles therein.

For distinction the parallel side arms of the reinforcing rod are indicated by the numeral 15, the same extending through the outer ends of the doors 6, above the pivot rods 9 and are threaded, and the oppositely disposed threaded pairs of arms have slidably arranged thereon a handle bar 16. The opposite faces of each of the handle bars is engaged by nuts 17 that are screwed on the threaded ends 15 of the arms of the members 8,. and whereby the handle bars or rods 16 may be adjusted toward or away from the angle sides of the chute. The sides 4 of the chute are cutaway to receive the arms 15 therethrough, and the weighted handle bars 16 materially assist the springs in forcing the doors 6 to their closed positions. 7 By reference toFigures 1 and 4 of the drawings it will be noted that the inner ends of the doors to be considered in the nature of 6 are slightly spaced away from each other and by arranging the doors at opposite downward inclinations the weight ofa fowl delivered on the said doors will cause the same to automatically open so that the fowl will be deposited into the coop or crate 1. However. if desired, the handle bars may be employed for individually opening either of the doors. The device may be arranged upon any type of .slatted coops and upon other types of crates having doors at the top thereof, and r with the improvement thefowls arev posi tively directed into the coop. or crate.

stances the springs may be entirely dis pensed with.

Having described the invention, we claim: 7

1. A chute adapted to be arranged over the door opening of a fowl shipping crate, having inwardly inclined sides, a pair of inwardly inclined doors in the chute, stop elements on the ends. of the chute for holding the doors inclined, a shaft comprising a pivot for the outer end of each of the doors, an angle arm on the outer end of each shaft, an adjustable spring connecting each pair of angle arms and a housing for the angle arms and springs, rods extending from the ends of the doors, passing beyond the sides of the coop and having their ends threaded, a' handle member slidable-on eachpair of rods, and nut elements screwed on the rods to contact {with the opposite sides of the handle mem ers.

2'. A chute adapted tov be arranged over the door opening of a fowl shipping crate, having inwardly inclined sides, a pair of inwardly inclined doors. in the chute, stop elements for holding the doors inclined, a shaft comprising a pivot. for the outer end of each of the doors, angle arms on the ends of each shaft, an adjustable spring connecting each pair of angle, rods, rods extending from the arms: of thedoors and passing beyond thesides of the coop,and av handle member movabeon.butadjustably-secured to each pair of ro s.

,In. testimony whereof we atfix our signatures. ROY L. BROOKSHIRE.

FRANKLIN JOHN.

' The construction and advantages of the r device will, it is though, be understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art to which such invention relates,so that further detailed description will not be required. Obviously we do not wish to be restricted to the precise details herein set forth and, there fore, hold ourselves entitled to make such changes therefrom as fairly fall within the scope of what we claim.

Obviously the improvement may be em ployed in connection with coops that are constructed of wire, wood or any other material, providing such coops have door openings in the top portions thereof. The handle bars are employed for opening the doors when the fowls are to be removed from the coop and, therefore, the improvement is also an uncooping device. The handle bars are weighted and assist the spring 12 in holding the doors closed. By adjusting the nuts that hold-the handle bars on the rods it will be obvious that the weighted handle bars can be adjusted to positively insure the closing ofthe doors so that the springs 12 need be tensioned only at long intervals if at all, while in some in 

